


dear gravity, you held me down in this endless city [1]

by xx_lockandload



Series: Dear Gravity [1]
Category: Panic At The Disco
Genre: Asylum, M/M, William Beckett - Freeform, brendon, crazzzeh!fic, pete wentz - Freeform, ryan - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2009-11-16
Updated: 2009-11-16
Packaged: 2017-10-03 02:28:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,989
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13214
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xx_lockandload/pseuds/xx_lockandload
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ryan's not crazy. He knows it, William knows it, and he's pretty sure that this psychiatrist, she knows it, too.</p>
            </blockquote>





	dear gravity, you held me down in this endless city [1]

Ryan’s not crazy. He knows it, William knows it, and he’s pretty sure that this psychiatrist, she knows it, too.        

“There’s no need to yell, Ryan.” She’s a bitch.

He glares. “I’m not _yelling_.”

She raises a perfectly plucked, dark eyebrow. “Then what would you call this?”

He hates this so, so much. He’d die just to be back in his 10 by 8 foot cell with William. “I’m emphasising.”

She doesn’t look impressed. _Bitch_. “We just think it’d be better for you, here, where you can get some treatment-,”

“I don’t _need _any treatment!” He’s yelling, screaming at her now, and the terror expands her eyes as she stands, stumbles away from him. He’s gaining on her, each step taking him further into the darkness, when four thick, strong arms grip hold of his wrists and pull him away.

One, two, and a needle is forced into his arm. Three, four, five, and his vision blurs. Six, and he’s limp in his gaoler’s arms.

 

***

 

_ He remembers how all this started. _

_ He was walking home from school one night, late, when someone grabbed him and pulled him into an alleyway not three blocks from his home. He tried to scream, but there’s a hand over his mouth, silencing any noise he might have made. _

_ “You shut up. Shut up.” His attacker hissed, and the waistband of his jeans cut into his hips. Ryan tried to punch him, tried to scream for help, but there was no use. _

_ It all faded to black. _

 

***

 

 

And now he’s here, in Riversmeet Mental Institute. It’s sparkling clean, everything is white and everybody’s the same, everybody’s a robot.

 

***

 

 

_ Three days afterwards he was talking to William about it. _

_ “I-I can’t remember what happened, Will.” He whispered, rubbing a shaking hand against his forehead. _

_ William patted him on the shoulder, smiling a secret smile. “Don’t worry about it, Ry. It’s sorted.” _

_ Ryan looked up at that, and is about to speak – what did he mean? – when the front door opened and a swarm of policemen flooded in. _

_ “Down on the ground! Now, get down!” _

_ The orders were coming from all directions. Ryan, eyes wide and horror flooding through his veins, drops to his knees and from there to the floor, cheek pressed against the carpet. One cop knelt hard on his back as he wrenched Ryan’s arms back behind him to slap handcuffs on his wrists. _

_ Dimly, Ryan can hear words (“arrested… suspected murder… right to remain…evidence…”) but his brain was just searching for  _ williamwilliamwilliam, _who he couldn’t see _anywhere. _Ryan groaned as he was pulled to his feet. Even the certainty that he’s innocent didn’t help, and within a second of being dragged from his own house, he passed out._

 

***

 

 

William laughs as they’re dragged into a room with two beds, two chairs, and white, white walls. “Don’t worry, Ry. This is going to be _fun_!” He claims, clapping his hands together. Ryan tries to believe him.

 

***

 

 

_ They convict him for murdering the man in the alley. His name had been David, David Reeve. They told him that Ryan had beaten him to death with the lid of a big, silver, metal dustbin. Ryan whispers that he didn’t do it, but they have forensics and a bloody t-shirt –  _ his _bloody t-shirt - found under his bed, which prove him wrong._

_ He’s in a cell for six months before they noticed him talking to William. _

 

***

 

 

He meets the other patients. Some of them seem pretty normal. He wonders what’s wrong with them. William’s whispering in his ear, trying to get him to _scream_, but Ryan just bites his lip and shakes each hand presented to him.

 

***

 

“So.” Pete’s leering, his teeth sharp and white and _dangerous _in the fluorescent light of the hallways. “They say you’re kinda smart.”

Ryan shrugs noncommittally.

“Well, ain’t you?” Pete demands.

“They say I’m crazy, too.”

Pete giggles at that. “Well, ain’t you?”

 

***

 

Late that night in the white, white room, William’s talking to Ryan. “They’re all mad. You’d better keep away from them.”

“Really?” Ryan whispers, careful not to wake Brendon, his roommate. Brendon’s not Ryan’s kind of crazy – he’s as sane as they come. But Ryan’s seen the scars on Brendon’s wrist, he knows the reason why he’s here.

William’s staring at Brendon’s sleeping form, too. “Maybe I should kill him as well.”

Ryan jerks upright, dropping the book he’s reading. “What?”

“I’m collecting quite a list. David Reeve, Josh Harper, Lucy Yeung…” Ryan’s whimpering, pressing his hands over his ears. He doesn’t want to hear the names of the other three people who were in that car. “They said – they said it _swerved_.”

William’s sitting on the chest of drawers, watching him impassively. “They hurt you, Ryan, all the way through high school. So I took care of it.”

“Christ, goddammit.” He swears. “Don’t say things like that, jerk.” Ryan snaps.

“Ryan?” He whips around to see Brendon sitting up in bed, looking frightened. “Who’re you talking to?” He asks timidly.

Ryan turns, only to see that William’s disappeared.

He scowls. “Nobody.”

 

***

 

_ Ryan can remember his sophomore year. _

_ Him and Spencer, his ex best friend, had skipped a lesson – Physics, English? – to sit in the middle of the empty sports field. Spencer took Ryan’s right hand, pulling hard as he gets to his feet. He ended up toppling on Ryan, and they stared into each other’s eyes in slight shock. There was only a small gap between their faces, and Ryan could feel Spencer’s breath on his mouth. Ryan’s eyes flickered from Spencer’s to his lips and back to his eyes. And Spencer got it, just like that, and he closed the space between them, pressing his lips to Ryan’s. Ryan really couldn’t ignore the fact that his best friend is making him feel so good, so nice, and he just leaned into Spencer’s touch, fingers trailing down his face. _

_ They eventually pull away. _

_ “Wow.” Ryan murmurs. _

 

***

 

Ryan, he hates it when people call him crazy.

His second evening there, the patients ask him what it’s like in the outside world. William’s sitting to his left, glaring at them. Ryan can’t stop glancing towards him every couple of seconds. He looks _murderous. _He shrugs, smiling slightly. They persist.

And then, when he curls up into a tiny ball, digging the heels of his hands into his eyes, they exchange knowing glances. They mutter a few sentences – Ryan can’t hear the precise wording, but he can guess what they’re saying – and move away.

He _hates _it here.

 

***

 

_ Him and Spencer, they don’t last long. Ryan’s dad found out and locked him in the closet for kissing a boy, after beating him long enough that he’d remember his lesson, of course. Ryan was always scared after that, prone to blacking out, and he often didn’t see Spencer for weeks on end. _

_ Turns out Spencer had started a band, with a couple of guys from a nearby school. Ryan felt betrayed – they’d been playing together since middle school, for Chris’sakes.  _

_ When he hadn’t spoken to Spencer for three months he gave up. _

 

***

 

One of the nurses comes in to his and Brendon’s room about a week since he arrived and asks him to look after Brendon. Apparently he hasn’t been all that happy recently. Ryan stares at him, mouth wide open. ‘Cause Brendon’s right _there_. Plus – why should he do anything?

“Why should I?” He forces out.

The nurse looks taken aback. “He’s your roommate.”

A harsh giggle escapes his lips. William’s right by his ear, whispering words, to scream and shout. They spill through Ryan’s lips. “Why should I stop any whiney emo kid from offing himself?”

There’s a gasp from the other side of the room. Brendon’s wide eyes are piercing right through him. Even the nurse looks shocked. “I’m not fucking nice. And I really don’t want to help you. _Or _him.”

Everything’s getting darker. He’s losing control and William’s gaining it. “We’re _murderers_. We’ve _killed people_. We don’t – we won’t-,”

Ryan disappears into the black.

 

***

 

After that his psychiatrist gives him a prescription and makes sure he takes it, once every morning and once every evening, so he doesn’t see William for a little while. He’s given Valium, as well, so he’s considered safe enough to wander the hospital grounds, dull eyed. His thoughts come so much slower now that he’s lost count of how many days – weeks? – he’s been here.

The others in the hospital are wary of him now. They _know _he was in prison, and in prison for murder at that. Sure, these people are crazy – but when one of their own (Brendon) is hurt, they get protective. 

Ryan was tired of listening to Brendon cry himself to sleep each night.

Especially since he now no longer had William for company.

 

***

 

_ Ryan last saw Spencer a couple of months before his arrest. He’d been walking through the park when he’d seen Spencer on a bench to his left, crying. It didn’t matter to Ryan that he’d been abandoned – he was at Spencer’s side in seconds. _

_ “Are you okay?” _

_ “Yeah, I’m-,” Spencer looked up and froze. “Oh. Ryan.” _

_ Ryan smiled slightly. “Hey.” _

_ “I-its nothing, really.” _

_ It’s then Ryan first saw William. A tall, thin-as-a-stick teenage boy leaning against a tree arms folded and wearing a smirk. Ryan ignored him and turned back to Spencer. “Really?” _

_ He sighed. “No. My friend – our singer – tried to kill himself.” _

_ “I’m sorry.” And he was, but not to the point that he could forget what Spencer’s done to him. He turned away, towards William. Who speaks. The words echo in Ryan’s head, even though this boy is yards away. Ryan shivers. Something feels… not quite right. He turned back around, towards Spencer.  _

_ “So, how are things? Since you transferred?” There was a steely note in his voice he didn’t recognise. _

_ Spencer – who was still fucking crying, God – looked up, startled. “Good – I guess.” He paused. “You?” _

_ “Shitty.” Its true. The bullying had escalated now he no longer had a protector. _

_ “Oh.” _

_ The world had gone blurry. Ryan blinked once, twice, but it didn’t help. He tried to stand up. A strangled noise escaped his throat as he surrendered to the darkness. _

_ He’d thought he was ill until he got to know William. _

 

***

 

Ryan really hates the thunder, always has and always will.

Outside the wind was whipping the trees around and lightning was flashing across the midnight black sky as thunder echoed across the road and rooftops of Vegas.

Inside Ryan is lying in bed, shaking and crying silently. With every loud crash of thunder Ryan shakes and curls himself tighter into the soft blanket covering his quivering body.

Ryan isn’t the brave one, isn’t supposed to be the brave one, never was.

Another roll of thunder and another gasp of surprise and fright. William’s returned. Ryan isn’t sure whether he’s terrified or ecstatic. Thing is – he’s not quite _here_. It’s like he’s hovering round the outskirts of Ryan’s awareness.

“Ryan?” Ryan’s eyes snap open. Brendon’s standing in the doorway. “You okay?”

As if transfixed, Ryan’s head moves slowly from left to right.

Brendon moves forwards, kneels on the edge of the bed. “What’s the matter?”

Ryan’s gaze flickers towards the window and back.

“William…” The word takes everything out of Ryan. It physically hurts him and he begins to curl in on himself. Brendon stares at him for a moment, shuffling forwards so his knees are gently touching Ryan’s side.

Eventually he speaks. “It’ll be okay, Ryan. It’s only noise.”

“I’m scared.” Two words whispered, covered by yet another loud bang of thunder and followed by a broken sob. Brendon lies down instantly beside him and wraps an arm around Ryan’s waist. Ryan tenses, but doesn’t move.

“I promise, it’ll be over soon.”

Ryan has learnt not to trust any promises, but Brendon wasn’t lying. It is over, within minutes, but Ryan and Brendon still don’t move.


End file.
